Isaac Sopoaga was chosen as one of the most improved defense tackles by crew at Playbook.

"The crew at Playbook has taken to the film to find players who made marked improvements on the field. " In their third installment that looked at defensive tackles. They selected the three most improved defensive tackles—Sopoaga, Kyle Love from the Patriots, and Geno Atkins from the Bengals.

This is what they said about Sopoagba.

"He was tremendously disciplined while facing a variety of schemes. Against traps and wham-blocks, he had the wherewithal to hold his ground and properly take on the blocker while squeezing the hole. Sopoaga demonstrated athleticism and great footwork for a 330-pound man, able to move laterally against zone runs, get penetration and shuck blockers to make a play."

Carlos Rogers, 49ersRogers went from being a disappointment in Washington to a Pro-Bowler in San Francisco. The 49ers played a lot of man-to-man coverage in 2011, showcasing Rogers' athleticism and allowing him to focus on a single task: shutting down the man across from him. The former first-round pick was put in a position to succeed and ran with the opportunity.

Jim Harbaugh took Smith under his wing, a move that produced positive results from Week 1 on. San Francisco structured the offense to maximize his abilities and Smith discovered a newfound decisiveness, helping him take a big step in 2011.

The 49ers' passing game changed dramatically in 2011. Harbaugh did not ask Smith to step outside of his abilities; the quarterback attempted nearly seven fewer passes per game in 2011 than he did the previous season, but threw three more touchdowns and five fewer interceptions. The team took advantage of the underneath passing game and utilized Smith's mobility with bootlegs off of play-action. Smith also made better decisions, refraining from forcing balls and knowing when to throw it away.

Sopoaga was always a great athlete for his size. I just really think the coaching helped this year. He very should be one of the best Nose tackles in the league at that size and with that ability.

Rogers was never a bad corner, I don't think he was too much of a disappointment in Washington. That whole team was bad and he had some good years although with not as many interceptions. He was always a top cover guy with or without the turnovers but this year he did help our team a lot with timely interceptions.

Smith may be one of the most improved players in the league. With a full grasp of a genius playbook he can certainly turn in a pro bowl season next year. It makes me wonder about what Harbaugh could do with a different guy, maybe one with all the tools to be a leading passer who Harbaugh could mould from the beginning of his career.

I think a lot of us thought Sopoaga had it in him to be very good.....it just took him a few years to learn. Rogers surprised everybody by catching 6 INTs (he probably should have had 8 or so). That's way more than expected. Alex improved dramatically! I would say he was the most improved of the 3.

Not sure that these players improved their play as much as people learned to appreciate their ability and the systems/positions were better fits.

--Rogers was known to be good but had bad hands--which he turned around making him a complete player. So he would be my most improved for his interceptions.
--Sopoaga was a good NT before (a few years ago), very stout, but is more patient now and accepting of his role.
--Smith had the luxury of support and knowledge from his head coach for the first time in his career and did well, but he had played well off and on for his entire career.

I would expect much more improvement from Smith next year with a full off-season with receivers, and improved WRs. The other two will hopefully play as well (provided they are retained!).

Originally posted by BillWalsh:
Sopoaga was always a great athlete for his size. I just really think the coaching helped this year. He very should be one of the best Nose tackles in the league at that size and with that ability.

It's been said since Sopoaga was drafted that he is a great athletic specimen, but was always a raw player. It's so nice to see him improve to be a mature veteran that is one of the most important players on our defense.

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